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When it comes to weekday meals, sometimes we just don't have the energy. That's where these easy, budget-friendly meal prep recipes become your best friend. Just grab some storage containers and prepare lunch or dinner for the whole week.
Burrito Bowl in a Jar
"Great idea and they look really pretty as well! My fiancé loved taking these to work instead of his normal boring sandwich!"
-anniesnomsblog
Rotisserie Vinaigrette Chicken Salad
"Loved this salad. We enjoyed the combination of the vinaigrette and the nice rotisserie chicken, which always allows for a quick dinner with flavor options too!"
-Mommy Diva
"These are easy to assemble and make-ahead, so they’re ideal for a grab-and-go healthy breakfast."
-Anonymous
Sweetgreen Corn Elote Bowl
"Charred corn meets smokey-sweet romesco dressing in this version of a deconstructed dish of elote."
-norasingley
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Healthy Chicken Salad
"This is a super easy chicken salad recipe using canned chicken. It is simple, yet has a great flavor to it. The secret is in chilling it for a few hours before serving!"
-Violet789
Perfect Basic White Rice
Eat this simple recipe fresh or save it for fried rice later in the week—the choice is up to you.
Basic Vinaigrette with 8 Variations
"Bottled salad dressing can be convenient but its expensive and often full of salt, sugar, and chemical additives. Making your own is simple and allows you to customize the seasonings to suit whatever meal you are preparing. It can be made several days ahead and kept in the fridge."
-3KillerBs
Egyptian Red Lentil Soup
"This was so delicious. I used sweet onion and red pepper flakes for contrast. My husband loved it too. Plan to make it weekly and pack for lunch."
-Ripalrock
Chia's Gazpacho
"Came looking for an easy gazpacho recipe and all I can say is wow! Love it! As good as this is after a couple of hours, it's even better the next day."
-CarolynB
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"I make this all the time to take to work for lunch. You can add so many variations. Roasted red peppers are a nice touch or a few chili flakes. Sometimes I add a bit of mustard into the dressing or use roasted garlic paste instead of raw garlic."
-Sackville
Palak Paneer
"This is one of the nicest spinach dishes I have ever eaten. I used baby spinach, so didn't bother to blend the cooked mixture. It took only minutes to prepare, and not much longer for the family to demolish it. I didn't have paneer on hand, so used haloumi, which worked well."
-Leggy Peggy
Coconut Chicken Curry
"This is a wonderful way to have curry for dinner on a weekday! I would have never thought to put it in the Crock Pot!"
-Chrissy 007
The Best Pasta Salad
"I just realized I've been making this all summer long and hadn't rated how good it is. If I want to turn it into lunch for the week ahead I just shred some chicken in as well, making a filling meal."
-McGelby
Chicken Tortilla Soup
"This soup is amazing, and even better the next day. I have been eating it for lunch as a leftover and it is fabulous after sitting and marinating further."
-Heather A.
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Greek Quinoa Salad
"I've made this recipe countless times. Love the dressing. It's easy and it's my favorite thing to take for lunch."
-8nine
Crock Pot Ratatouille
"It makes the best sandwiches ever. I buttered up some Dutch crunch rolls and toasted them in the oven, then melted some mozzarella on one side and added the ratatouille. It was pretty messy because the ratatouille is so juicy, but it was amazing!"
-nicolepierce1989
Overnight Oats
Perfectly packable, all you need to do is mix the ingredients and put them in the fridge overnight. The next day, simply eat cold or warm up quickly in the microwave.
Italian Tomato Sauce
"Made this sauce with the meatballs recipe. Absolutely the best two recipes for Italian sauce and meatballs—ever! Delicious! And I've been making meatballs and sauce for 40 years!"
-eugeh20s
Healthy Turkey Chili
"So tasty and so easy! I would usually go crazy with the chili powder, but this recipe is perfect. It even tastes great after being frozen!"
-spicysultan
Homemade Chicken Stock
"I made this using a big bag of chicken legs bones. Nice and easy to do and it turned out great. Now I have broth to make some wonderful chicken soup."
-bigbadbrenda
Wild Rice Salad
"This is a five-star salad. I added some orange zest as one of the other reviewers suggested. I also brought the salad to room temperature prior to serving, as coldness tends to mask the flavors."
-Chef Regina V. Smith
Confetti Orzo Salad
"This recipe is awesome! It is easy to pull together. I can't wait to have it cold tomorrow for lunch. I think I'll add some leftover steak from tonight for protein."
-Luvs 2 Cook
"This was one of the most delicious things I've ever made! Make in advance to let the flavors build up!"
-Robert G.
Spicy Cold Soba Noodles
"I make this quite often; we love it. It has the right amount of spiciness, and you can adjust the spiciness to fit your tastes. We also use this sauce as a dip for spring rolls or egg rolls, or as a sauce for broccoli or other stir fried Asian vegetables."
-Spatchco*ck
Blackberry Breakfast Bars
"Holy cow, these were so delicious! I made the recipe with the ingredients listed and didn't change anything. I used fresh picked blackberries that were a little tart still but they tasted so sweet baked in to this!"
-DCKiki
The Easiest Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs
"Truly perfect way to cook hard boiled eggs.”
-foodtvfan
Roasted Green Beans
"Our family loves these. What a healthy, nice recipe!”
-CookinontheFly
Mineral-Rich Bone Broth
“Fantastic and very clear directions. Thanks for posting!”
-katrinepa2
Low-Carb Cream of Broccoli Soup
"Delicious soup! Hard to believe it's low-carb. Even if you aren't on a special diet, you will enjoy this soup. It's creamy, tasty and easy to prepare. I was worried that I would end up with little lumps of cream cheese, but by the time it was done cooking, all of the lumps had been boiled out."
-DeliciousAsItLooks
Low-Carb Taco Soup
“This low-carb chicken taco soup recipe can be made in a pressure cooker or slow cooker. The broth is bursting with flavor and makes such a tasty soup.”
-Joe Turner
Not Your Mama's Low-Carb Meatloaf
"I've made this now two different times and love it! It is so addictive.”
-maryann denobrega
Low-Carb Chili
"The spices are spot on! Don't change them until you've at least tried them as listed in the ingredients.”
-Mr. Sandman
Low-Carb Breakfast Balls
"I really enjoyed these as a no-carb breakfast. Today, I am adding spinach and garlic powder."
-elaina.thiemann
Collard Greens
“Great recipe — made as is and enjoyed the sweet and spicy flavor.”
-Ser Cooks
Sautéed Mushrooms
“Great dish. Went perfect with a big ole sirloin and a baked tater.”
-riffraff
Pan-Roasted Broccoli
"The technique is what makes this recipe. Follow the directions exactly and you will be amazed at the result (nutty flavor almost). It is fabulous.”
-dunncarter
Mock Mashed Potatoes
“I’ve never been the biggest fan of mashed cauliflower because I usually find it too watery, but not this one! The steaming really helps eliminate excess water rather than boiling it. It was flavorful!”
-Jonathan Melendez
Low-Carb Cauliflower Spanish Rice
"Delicious! Does not taste like cauliflower at all! I topped it off with some chopped cilantro."
-DeliciousAsItLooks
Cinnamon Flax Muffins
"A great way to add flax to your diet! I didn't have sugar-free syrup, so I substituted honey instead, with good results.”
-Heavens Kitchen
Low-Fat Apple Orange Oat Bran Muffins
“I am not a huge fan of most muffins (too sickly sweet for me) but these are great.”
-Quite Contrary
"What a great healthy snack this makes! Yum! I used cranberries, raisins and sultanas for the fruit and unsalted shell-roasted peanuts. It was delightful and I could hardly stop myself from munching.”
-Lalaloula
Thai Chicken Cakes With Sweet Chilli Sauce
"I thought these had a very nice flavor and texture. I did use ground turkey (93% ), so I bet that helped with the moisture. They do need a sauce — I used hoisin sauce since it was what I had on hand. I froze these after cooking and have been using in pitas and on salad for lunches.”
-Patti OFurniture
Peanut Butter Protein Bars
“This is a great recipe, both for taste and ease of making. I have just finished making my third batch; it lends itself well to variations.”
-Sweet Baboo
Cheesy Keto Microwave Egg Loaf
“In a matter of minutes, combine some simple pantry ingredients and poof! With microwave magic, this eggy, sliceable loaf with cheese and herbs can be yours!”
-norasingley
Crustless Spinach Quiche
"This was very easy to make. I added mushroom with the onions and used a different type of cheese as i didn't have the one recommended but the end result as fantastic.”
-Tulip-Fairy
Savory Keto Breakfast Muffins
"Quite tasty and not difficult to make."
-Angela T.
Easy Black Bean Soup
“This was fantastic and super easy to make. It's certainly a good base recipe that you can customize to your liking.”
-portiaperrucci
Easy Low-Fat, Low-Carb, Low-Cal Diet Soup
“I lost so much weight eating this! It's fabulous! I add pepper flakes for some spice! I eat as much as I’d like and don’t have to feel bad!”
-crazydreamer331
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